Tar sands emit more carbon than previously estimated

TransCanada to build southern half of Keystone to avoid State Department approval (02/29/2012) Keystone XL is becoming the project that refuses to die: TransCanada, the company behind the pipeline, has said it plans to build the southern half of the pipeline while it waits to determine a new route for the northern section. The company does not need approval from the State Department, which turned down the entire pipeline in January, to build the southern half from Texas to Oklahoma. However, the Obama Administration has embraced the idea. Carrying carbon-intensive tar sands oil down from Canada to a global market, the proposed pipeline galvanized environmental and climate activists last year, resulting in several large protests and civil disobedience actions. Big oil makes $137 billion, gives 28 percent back to themselves (02/13/2012) The world's top five oil companies—BP,...